Sigalla, O.Z.; Twisa, S.; Chilagane, N.A.; Mwabumba, M.F.; Selemani, J.R.; Valimba, P. Future Trade-Off for Water Resource Allocation: The Role of Land Cover/Land Use Change. Water2024, 16, 493.
Sigalla, O.Z.; Twisa, S.; Chilagane, N.A.; Mwabumba, M.F.; Selemani, J.R.; Valimba, P. Future Trade-Off for Water Resource Allocation: The Role of Land Cover/Land Use Change. Water 2024, 16, 493.
Sigalla, O.Z.; Twisa, S.; Chilagane, N.A.; Mwabumba, M.F.; Selemani, J.R.; Valimba, P. Future Trade-Off for Water Resource Allocation: The Role of Land Cover/Land Use Change. Water2024, 16, 493.
Sigalla, O.Z.; Twisa, S.; Chilagane, N.A.; Mwabumba, M.F.; Selemani, J.R.; Valimba, P. Future Trade-Off for Water Resource Allocation: The Role of Land Cover/Land Use Change. Water 2024, 16, 493.
Abstract
Global croplands, pastures, plantations, and human settlement areas have expanded in recent decades, accompanied by large increases in energy, water, and fertilizer consumption, along with considerable losses of biodiversity. In sub-Saharan Africa, policies are implemented without critical consideration e.g., agricultural expansions impair ecosystem services of the several river basins. The current study has studied landuse/cover and associated rate of change for four-time epochs i.e., 1991, 2001, 2011 and 2021. This employed remote sensing and GIS techniques for LULC analysis while future projection was modelled using cellular automata and Markov chain. The Kappa coefficient statistics were used to assess the accuracy of final classified image while reference images for accuracy assessment were developed based on ground truthing. Overall change results between 1991 and 2021, showed that major percentage loss in area were experienced by water, forest, woodland and wetland which decreased by 8,222Ha (44.11%), 426,161Ha (35.72%), 399,584Ha (35.01%) and 105,186Ha (34.82%). On the other hand, percentage increase in area during the same period were experienced in cultivated land, built up areas and grasslands which increased by 659,346Ha (205.28%), 11,894Ha (159.93%) and 33,547Ha (98.47%). However, even with the expanding thirsty sectors water discharged out of the catchment is on increment at a rate of 498.6 m3/s/year. For dualistic benefits, agroforest practices are recommended along with participatory law enforcement and capacity building of local communities through their institutions.
Keywords
land use/land cover; remote sensing and GIS; water allocation; water resource management
Subject
Environmental and Earth Sciences, Water Science and Technology
Copyright:
This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
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